Photo:

Tim Sudduth / Eclipse Sportswire

Few people may know his name, but it is hard to match Joe Lee when it comes to horsemanship.

Now on his own with Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf hopeful May Day Ready, Lee has traveled the world as an assistant to elite trainers.

Lee, 62, graduated from the University of Kentucky in 1989 and worked for D. Wayne Lukas when Kiaran McLaughlin was an assistant and Todd Pletcher was the foreman. He journeyed with McLaughlin to Dubai as an assistant in 1993 and spent seven years there.

He learned even more during an 11-year stint in Japan. He worked there for his father-in-law, Takemi Kaga, a former champion jockey turned trainer. He then operated his own feed company for a time before returning to McLaughlin as an assistant for another five years. When McLaughlin retired in 2020 to become a jockey’s agent, he went on his own with a handful of McLaughlin’s horses.

May Day Ready, 3 for 3 and loaded with promise, has finally brought attention to the Belmont Park-based Lee and his six-horse stable.

“In the past, nobody really knows who I am or what I did or who I worked for,” Lee said. “For the most part, I’ve bee the quiet guy who’s helped out.”

He is not complaining. He is grateful for every opportunity that came his way.

“I’ve been fortunate, extremely fortunate, to work not only around good horses but good horsemen, good people. It’s been great,” he said.

Lee and his wife, Suzuyo, have four children – Joseph, 27; Anthony, 25; Dominic, 24; and Stephanie, 23. He said family considerations led him to break from the past and go out on his own. Joseph and Anthony work closely with him and are eager to learn as much as they can with an eye toward advancing their careers.

Lee, of course, is accustomed to being around high-caliber horses. He quickly recognized quality in May Day Ready, who joined his small stable after being purchased for $325,000 by KatieRich Farms at the Ocala Breeders’ Sale spring sale of 2-year-olds in training.

He was prepared for a high-strung filly since Tapit progeny can be mercurial. She has instead been a delight in every way.

“She was extremely professional from day one,” Lee said. “She takes everything in stride. She wasn’t nervous. She was doing everything right.”

That has continued. He initially targeted a turf sprint at Saratoga for her first start. When that race failed to go for three consecutive days, he reluctantly entered her on the grass at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on Aug. 4 at Saratoga. He explained to Frankie Dettori, a jockey he has known for several decades, that he viewed the race as one that would at least provide her with needed experience.

May Day Ready did not appear to be quite ready in the early stages of her debut, sitting ninth of 10. Dettori got her into a nice rhythm, however, and she was there for him when it was time to go. She got up by a nose.

It was on to Kentucky Downs for the Sept. 8 Juvenile Fillies Stakes at one mile. She again delivered, this time by 1 3/4 lengths. Lee asked her to step up again in the Jessamine (G2) at Keeneland on Oct. 4. She displayed grit and determination that should serve her well at the Breeders’ Cup. With Totally Justified driving to her inside and Destino d’Oro vying to her outside, she stuck her nose in front in a blanket three-horse photo.

In many ways, May Day Ready stands apart from the crowd. Lee praised her intelligence and said she is “undoubtedly the most inquisitive horse I’ve been around.”

While coast-to-coast travel is always a concern, she has so far handled everything thrown at her. “I’ve shipped horses all over the world and I’ve never seen a horse like her,” the trainer said.

Lee is filled with hope as the Juvenile Fillies Turf comes into view. “I think we have a good chance,” he said. “She’s training extremely well right now. I couldn’t be happier with her. But a lot can happen between now and Nov. 1.”

Spoken like someone who has been there, done that the world over.